Predictions are in for Beijing’s next foreign minister, and according to insider sources, one name has risen above all others.
Liu Jianchao leads the Chinese Communist Party’s international department—which usually handles relations with other communist nations like North Korea—and thus has noticeably less experience dealing with the White House than is typical for Beijing’s chief diplomat.
To combat that, he’s taken a more active, diplomatic role in the past half-year. He’s visited New York, Washington, and San Francisco this month alone, seemingly to prime him for future dealings with the U.S. and American business leaders.
But his visit to the United States caused quite a stir when he met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Human rights activists pointed to his leadership in Beijing’s “Operation Fox Hunt,” a covert global operation to hunt down Chinese dissidents living overseas.
The operation is notorious for setting up illegal Chinese police stations worldwide, including in New York City.